


Take This Lonely Heart

by serpent_blossom



Category: Riverdale - Fandom, choni - Fandom
Genre: Abuse, Angst, ChONI AU, Cheryl Blossom Needs a Hug, Eventual Fluff, Eventual Smut, F/F, Fluff and Angst, How Do I Tag, Romance, Slow Burn, Toni Topaz Is an Angel, choni
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-06
Updated: 2019-01-06
Packaged: 2019-10-05 13:49:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,846
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17326172
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/serpent_blossom/pseuds/serpent_blossom
Summary: Toni Topaz is working as a singer in a small, cramped bar in New York City. Cheryl Blossom is the last person she expects to show up.





	Take This Lonely Heart

**Author's Note:**

> so... i really don't know what i'm doing

"Will you still love me in the morning? Will you stay for milk and coffee?" she softly swayed her hips and closed her eyes, letting her raspy vocals take over. Never in a million years had she expected to end up here. In a bar, in the middle of New York city. Growing up, she hadn't exactly been the most hard-working or the most ambitious student. The pink-haired singer honestly intended to spend the rest of her life in Riverdale. A city in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by violence and danger. Everything changed when she transferred to Riverdale High. She suddenly had a whole new set of opportunities out in the open. An actual education. For the first time in her educational career, her grades actually mattered, her attendance wasn't optional, and she saw a purpose in attending school. It was the first time she had hope. Hope that she’d eventually get out of this godforsaken town. She knew she had to work extremely hard to move away. It was seemingly impossible but if there was so much as a slim 1 percent chance, she knew she had to try. She was going to be the first generation in her family, to have an actual job. One that didn't involve a bunch of criminal activity. Toni was sick of crashing on random couches, she was sick of burdening her friends. She was essentially homeless. After her parents died, her uncle was supposed to take her in. They shared a trailer, at least in the beginning. As the years went on, he began to lock her out of the trailer, claiming everything for himself. At first it only happened every now and then. Mostly when he was drunk. But these occasional occurrences, turned into a daily routine. Toni just couldn't stay there.

She was proud of her roots, proud to be a serpent, but she had to do this for herself. She had to get herself out of there. And she did. Working harder than any other student, she managed to graduate. She spent many sleepless nights, catching up on the piles of schoolwork she was behind on, while also working two jobs to survive- and to save up money. Tears, sweat and rage, a whole mess of emotions and outbursts- despite the overwhelming odds, she managed to do it... with the help of her friends. She couldn't have done it alone. While everything around her changed, they were the only constant thing in her life. 

Here she was, singing her heart out in a small, old bar in the city of dreams. She was living in a tiny, cramped flat and she could barely afford the rent, but she was happy.  
Her eyes scanned the small audience. Many faces she knew she'd probably never see again. There was something deeply comforting about that thought. She loved being anonymous- it was the polar opposite of living in a small town, where it was almost impossible to remain unrecognized. 

The former serpent was still in the middle of singing a song, when Cheryl entered the bar. Red hair, alabaster skin, plumb lips... Toni recognized her immediately and she had to stop herself from gasping. Cheryl Blossom was probably the last person she had expected to see in a brought-down, small bar. The two of them weren't exactly friendly towards each other – at least for the majority of high school. After all, they grew up on totally different sides of the track and it was no secret that the hbic despised the serpents with every cell of her being. Toni had mostly admired her from afar. But there was a time- although it was short lived-, when the two of them were civil towards each other. They were friends at one point. They’d hung out a couple of times, watching movies and chatting about random shenanigans that they were up to, but one night had changed everything. Things started to go downhill from then on. 

The taller girl was too focused on her phone, to notice Toni's presence. She sat down in one of the barstools and ordered something to drink. She brushed her hair out of her face, bouncing her legs up and down, a frown on her face. Cheryl was furious, anxious and nervous all at the same time, chewing on her bottom lip, desperately waiting for a reply. 

Toni continued performing song after song, stealing occasional glances at the redhead. She hadn't counted but she was very well aware, that Cheryl was already on her 2rnd or even 3rd drink. She was still on her phone and even though she was facing the pink-haired girl sideways, the sour look on her face was evident. It wasn't rocket science to tell that the taller girl wasn't okay. 

She was furiously typing message after message, taking deep breaths in a pathetic attempt to calm down. This wasn't going anywhere. She sighed, locking her phone and angrily squeezing it into one of the back-pockets of her high-waisted black jeans. She slowly sunk down against the table, putting her head on the cold surface in defeat, after downing another drink. She hated the burning sensation in her throat and she already knew, she was going to regret this in the morning. The effects of the alcohol were slowly but steadily kicking in. Her life was one big mess. 

Now that her phone wasn't distracting her, she finally began to take in her surroundings. She had walked by this particular bar a million times before, but she had never bothered to get in. It wasn't exactly glamorous or inviting but at this very moment, Cheryl couldn't care less. The redhead simply wanted to drown out the thoughts in her mind. She was so tired. She slowly lifted her head from the table and glanced around the bar. She locked eyes with a couple of strangers. A few of them, offering a sympathetic smile, while others stared at her with an empty glance. 

"This next song is one of my favorite songs of all times, I hope you enjoy it." a raspy voice announced. Cheryl turned her head so fast, everything around her was spinning. Was it because of the alcohol? Toni was standing on stage a few feet in front of her, strumming on her guitar. The pink-haired girl softly smiled, completely focused on her music. Cheryl froze, wide eyes and her mouth agape. She was mesmerized, to say the least. She never knew that Toni could sing. She watched the pink- haired girl softly swaying to the music, completely engulfed in the music. Cheryl just could not look away. It took a moment for her, to compose herself and she immediately ordered another tequila shot.

When she turned her attention back to the pink-haired girl, the former-serpent was already looking at her, a small smirk evident on her face. But there was also something else, that Cheryl couldn't quite categorize. Was it concern? Anger? Resentment? She really couldn't tell. The redhead quickly broke their eye-contact, rolling her eyes and turning back around, facing the bartender. She pulled out her phone, letting out a growl of frustration.  
\-----  
"Didn't expect to see you here, bombshell." she shifted uncomfortably in her seat when the pink-haired girl sat down beside her.  
"I don't recall inviting you to sit beside me." Cheryl replied, her words coming out slightly slurred. She turned her head, finally glancing at the shorter girl. Instead of wearing the serpent jacket that Cheryl had become accustomed to, she wore a dark-green flannel along with a black tank-top and a pair of black ripped jeans. Toni chuckled, ordering a drink for herself.

"Still got a big mouth, I see..." the serpent turned in the barstool, so she was fully facing the redhead. She frowned when the redhead rolled her eyes, instead of coming up with a feisty remark. "... are you okay?" Toni immediately felt stupid for asking such a question. It was evident that the redhead was anything but okay. 

"Do I look like I'm okay?" Cheryl hissed in return, breaking their eye-contact. She squirmed in her seat, flipping her hair from one side to the other before she started picking at her nailbeds. A nervous habit that she'd always had. She slightly shook her head before downing another shot. Cheryl bit her bottom lip, looking anywhere but Toni's face. Why was she still sitting beside the pink-haired girl? She could just get up and leave. Leave the bar and never come back, never see her face again. The face that had been the cause of many sleepless nights in high school. Nights of fantasizing about kissing her plumb pink lips, and how it would feel to hold her hand. Looking back, it was probably just one of her silly, meaningless crushes. 

Cheryl inhaled deeply, twirling a strand of hair around her fingers. This was a mess. Out of every bar in New York City, she just had to enter this particular one. What were the odds? She was lonely, broken and mad and if there was one thing, that she hated more than anything, it was appearing weak in front of others. She was supposed to be in control. But here she was, a drunk mess in a random bar in New York. The redhead didn't even notice the tears streaming down her face, until they tickled her neck. Quickly wiping them away with the back of her hand, she closed her eyes for a brief moment, trying her hardest to keep herself together. To maintain her cold, bitchy facade. 

"Do you want to talk about it? I'm a good listener, I promise." Toni lightly squeezed her hand, a slight smile on her face. The redhead squirmed and shivered at her touch but when she realized what was happening, she jerked her hand away as quickly as possible. Her former classmate was probably going to take advantage of her being in a bad state of mind. That’s how it always was. Nobody really cared about her, why should she be an exception.  
"If you're looking for a girl to screw, you should try your luck elsewhere." she spat out, her words coming out less spiteful than intended. She laughed humorlessly, burying her head into her hands. This must have been one big cosmic joke. She was so dizzy, she felt like she was sitting in the middle of a hurricane. All the crap that she had been trying to ignore for the longest time, seemed to be hitting her at once- in the speed of light. Knowing that she should stop drinking, she still ordered another drink. 

Toni sighed, and she couldn't lie, she was concerned. The girl sitting next to her, was just a shell of the person that tormented her in high school. She looked miserable, completely exhausted. The bags under her eyes were evident, no amount of concealer could cover up the truth. It didn't change the fact that she was beautiful though. Her red hair was still shining, and it looked soft and silky; her lips were still as full and kissable as they had always been, but her eyes reflected years of exhaustion and abuse. They held so much pain, so much misery. Something that Toni could easily identify, since she was certainly no stranger to pain and shitty life situations.  
"I'm not trying to get in your pants, relax bombshell... How do you feel about sharing some fries? I don't know about you, but I'm starving." the shorter girl tried to change the subject. She figured getting some food into Cheryl's system was probably not a bad idea, since the girl was already pretty drunk. Instead of answering her question, the redhead simply shrugged nonchalantly.  
"I take that as a yes." she winked at Cheryl, before ordering the food.  
\----------  
"I c-can't believe you actually did tha-t! All this time I-I thought it was Reggie!" Giggling, she grabbed another fry, propping it into her mouth. Toni had just finished telling her a story about one of the pranks she had pulled in high-school. Back then, she had lost a bet against Sweet-Pea and Fangs, and she was forced to photoshop pictures of Principle Weatherbee and a couple of other teachers on underwear-models’ bodies. They secretly hung the pictures up all over the school building. It goes without saying that this seemingly harmless, stupid joke, had caused a huge uproar and outrage. 

"I was a dumbass... It was childish as hell, but I can't lie though, it was kind of funny to see their dumbfounded reactions." Toni admitted, smiling at the memory.  
She had successfully tried to distract Cheryl. Telling her a bunch of random stories, in hopes of eliciting a small smile -or any positive reaction for that matter- out of the redhead. She had no idea what she was doing but for some reason, she hated to see the taller girl in pain. 

After their laughter had died down, Cheryl faced Toni again, pondering her next words. "Why? Why are you being so nice to me?" The redhead brushed a strand of hair out of her face before looking at the former-serpent curiously. She just had to know. 

"I know we said pretty nasty things to each other in high school, but I've changed. I'm not as violent or bitchy as many people think I am." Toni replied, munching on a fry. It was true, she was a different person than she was two years ago. She wasn't as angry or as snappy as back then- she had learned a lot of important life lessons. In school, almost nobody dared to mess with her. Being a serpent was the main reason why people mostly stayed in their lane, and Toni loved it. It gave her a sense of security. That way, she didn't have to deal with additional drama. But moving to New York had changed everything. She’d soon realized that always keeping people at arm’s length, had made her extremely lonely and unhappy. So, she worked on herself to change, to be the best version of herself. 

Suddenly, Cheryl's troubled expression returned. "I kind of wish I could say the same thing about myself." She rubbed her temple, taking deep breaths, in an attempt to comfort herself. She really did not feel like breaking down in the middle of a bar, but she was exhausted. The effects of the alcohol were creeping up and she held on to the bar-counter for dear life, getting up from her stool.  
"I sh-should probably get go-ing." She abruptly stated- her words coming out slightly slurred- grabbing her small purse. Toni immediately jumped up from her seat, softly grabbing her upper arm.  
"Where is your flat?" she simply asked, concern being evident in her voice. After all the redhead could barely stand without wobbling. 

"About- I don't know... 30 minutes from here. I j-ust have to take the subway, because I don’t have much cash on me right now, considering I still have to pay for-" before she could finish her sentence, Toni interrupted her. "My flat is five minutes away from here. You can crash on my couch… if you want to. It's just… you're drunk and taking the subway doesn't sound like a good idea in this state, Cheryl." she nervously stumbled, afraid of crossing the line. She was very well aware that they were far from being friends, but they were friends at one point, and she still wanted her to be save.

"And crashing at your apartment is a good idea?” Cheryl huffed, a lopsided grin on her face. Toni shook her head, chewing on her bottom lip. 

"Please Cheryl... I just... I want you to be save, okay?" she replied, frowning when Cheryl turned to look at her. The former captain of the vixens, contemplated Toni's words for a moment, fighting a small battle within herself. Could she really trust her? She was too drunk to thoroughly think about anything, but Toni wouldn’t hurt her, right? She took a deep breath before running her slim fingers through her long, red mane.  
"O-okay, but if you try anything, I'm going to end you. This doesn`t make us friends." 

"I would never take advantage of you Cheryl, I promise." Toni assured her, a soft smile on her face. Cheryl just nodded slowly, throwing caution out of the window. The pink-haired girl payed for both of their drinks and food, cringing at the amount of money she'd just spent. Sighing she turned all her attention to the redhead. This was going to be... interesting. Cheryl could walk but she was very wobbly, stumbling over own feet, swaying left to right. The former serpent slowly put her arms around the taller girl's waist, trying to support her weight and to guide her as best as she could.  
"Is this okay?" she asked, glancing at the redhead. She could have sworn that Cheryl was blushing. The taller girl just nodded her head and the two of them left the bar, walking towards Toni's apartment in silence.


End file.
